Writing a Statement of Purpose Letter for Graduate School Applications

Please cite the following reference if you use or modify these materials:

Reference: Interactive Measurement Group. (2012). Writing a statement of purpose letter for
graduate school applications. Retrieved from http://img.faculty.unlv.edu/workshops/
 Writing a Statement of Purpose Letter for Graduate School
Applications
A Statement of Purpose letter should mention the following: “1) your interests in
psychology and how you came to have those interests, 2) your goals and ambitions in the field of
psychology, and 3) how the program to which you are applying can help you to achieve those
goals,” as stated by Dr. Karen Kemtes (a whole PowerPoint presentation on applying to graduate
school can be found on the Cluster Server in the “Lab Meetings and Presentations” folder). A
Statement of Purpose letter does NOT tell your whole life story. Thus, do not to begin your
statement with “I was born in…”; doing so will make you look “unsophisticated and naïve.”
When talking about your interests in psychology, avoid generic phrases such as “I want to
practice psychology so I can help people”. This statement is overly used and does not add much
to the letter. Would anyone want to practice psychology to hurt people? Possibly try to think
about a human problem that evokes your desire to practice psychology. – Linda J. Hayes and
Steven C. Hayes from UNR (www.unr.edu/psych/advising/howto.html)
When describing how you came to have those interests in psychology, focus on education
and occupational experiences instead of personal ones. Personal experiences are difficult to put
in a short written statement “without either trivializing them or needlessly confining your
intellectual interests to emotional motivation.” - Hayes (UNR)
When discussing your goals and ambitions, try to be as specific as possible. Do NOT say
that you are open-minded, just want to learn, and are going to decide on a career after graduation.
Doing so will make it look like you are uncertain about graduate school and the future. They are
looking for people who are motivated and who know what they want to study. Do show
openness in the program though and willingness to learn new things and possibly even different
career choices. – Hayes (UNR)
Your letter CANNOT be generic. Having a generic letter will hurt your chances of
getting accepted because the people who are reading it will think that you are not serious. Each
letter must be tailored to that specific school/program. Tell them why you are applying to
THEIR school and WHAT in their program interests you. Definitely do your homework!
In terms of the actual letter, think of it more as an essay. It has 3 main parts, an
introduction (which gives a brief synopsis of the letter), a body (which will describe your goals,
why you chose the program, a few faculty members with whom you would want to work, and
other accomplishments or assets that you have), and a conclusion (which should state that you
are competent, motivated, open for an interview, etc).

Writing a Winning Statement of Purpose

Source: http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/gcallaghan/graduate/winningstatement.htm

Determine your purpose in writing the statement

Usually the purpose is to persuade the admissions committee that you are an applicant that they
should choose. You may want to show that you have the ability and motivation to succeed in
your field, or you may want to show the committee that, on the basis of your experience, you are
the kind of candidate who will do well in the field. Whatever the purpose, it must be explicit to
give coherence to the whole statement.

1. Pay attention to the purpose throughout the statement so that extraneous material is left
out.
2. Pay attention to the audience (committee) throughout the statement. Remember, your
audience is made up of faculty members who are experts in their field. They want to
know that you can think as much as what you think.

Determine the content of your statement

Be sure to answer any direct questions fully. Analyze the questions or guidance statements for
the essay completely and answer all parts. For example: "What are the strengths and weaknesses
in setting and achieving goals and working through people?" In this question there are actually
six parts to be answered: 1) strengths in setting goals, 2) strengths in achieving goals, 3)
strengths in working through people, 4) weaknesses in setting goals, 5) weaknesses in achieving
goals and 6) weaknesses in working through people. Pay attention to small words. Notice: This
example question says through people and not with people; if it says with people, answer that
way.

Usually, graduate and professional schools are interested in the following:

1. Your purpose in graduate study. This means that you must have thought this through
before you try to answer the question.
2. The area of study in which you wish to specialize. This requires that you know the field
well enough to make such a decision.
3. Your future use of your graduate study. This will include your career goals and plans for
your future.
4. Your special preparation and fitness for study in the field. This is the opportunity to relate
your academic background with your extracurricular experience to show how they unite
to make you a special candidate.
5. Any problems or inconsistencies in your records or scores, such as a bad semester. Be
sure to explain in a positive manner and justify the explanation. Since this is a rebuttal
argument, it should be followed by a positive statement of your abilities.
6. Any special conditions that are not revealed elsewhere in the application, such as a large
(35 hour a week) work load outside of school. This too should be followed with a
positive statement about yourself and your future.
7. You may be asked, "Why do you wish to attend this school?" This requires that you have
done your research about the school and know what its special appeal is to you.
8. Above all this, the statement is to contain information about you as a person. They know
nothing about you that you do not tell them. You are the subject of the statement.

Determine your approach and the style of the statement

There is no such thing as "the perfect way to write a statement." There is only the one that is best
for you and fits your circumstances.
1. There are some things the statement should not be:

a. Avoid the "what I did with my life" approach. This was fine for grade school
essays on "what I did last summer." It is not good for a personal statement.
b. Equally elementary is the approach "I’ve always wanted to be a __________."
This is only appropriate if it also reflects your current career goals.
c. Also avoid a statement that indicates your interest in psychology is because of
your own personal psychotherapy or a family member’s psychological
disturbance. While this may have motivated many of us to go on to graduate study
in psychology, this is not what your audience is necessarily looking for in your
statement.

2. These are some things the statement should do:

a. It should be objective yet self-revelatory. Write directly and in a straightforward

manner that tells about your experience and what it means to you. Do not use
"academes" or jargon.
b. It should form conclusions that explain the value and meaning of your
experiences, such as: (1) what you learned about yourself; (2) those about your
field; (3) those about your future goals; and (4) those about your career concerns.
c. It should be specific. Document your conclusions with specific instances or draw
your conclusions as the result of individual experience. See the list of general
Words to Avoid Using without Explanation listed below.
d. It should be an example of careful persuasive writing.

CONSIDERATIONS ABOUT FORM:

a. Keep to the Page Limit Number!!! Reviewers have to read hundreds of these
applications; don’t overburden them with extra pages.
b. Do not leave in typographical errors. You don’t want to be taken less seriously due to a
typo.

WORDS TO AVOID USING WITHOUT EXPLANATION

significant invaluable appealing to me

interesting exciting, excited appealing aspect
challenging enjoyable, enjoy I like it
satisfying, satisfaction I can contribute it’s important
rewarding valuable fascinating
gratifying helpful appreciate
meaningful useful helping people
meant a lot to me feel good I like to help
stimulating remarkable people
incredible
GETTING STARTED

EXERCISES:

A. Recalling and analyzing experience - write short paragraphs on the following:

1. Pick a memorable accomplishment in your life. What did you do? How did you accomplish it?

2. What sort of important activities have you engaged in? With whom? What role did you play?

3. What work experiences have you had? What was your job? Your responsibility? How did you
carry it out?

• Now, look over your paragraphs. What skills and qualities do you believe you possess?
For example, consider working with others. Were you a leader? An important "team"
player?
• Looking at what you have found, you can now look for skills and qualities that will help
you in graduate school. What factors stand out?
o NOTE: You will undoubtedly have more material than you can use. This is good,
but you need to make strategic choices.

B. Your career goals - write two short paragraphs:

1. What career have you chosen? What factors formed this decision?

2. What evidence shows that this is a correct choice? That is, how can you show that this choice
is realistic? (Personal experience in the field is a good place to begin.)

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General Advice
Source: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/pw/p_perstate.html

Answer the questions that are asked

• If you are applying to several schools, you may find questions in each application that are
somewhat similar.
• Do not be tempted to use the same statement for all applications. It is important to
answer each question being asked, and if slightly different answers are needed, you
should write separate statements. In every case, be sure your answer fits the question
being asked.
Tell a story
• Think in terms of showing or demonstrating through concrete experience. One of the
worst things you can do is to bore the admissions committee. If your statement is fresh,
lively, and different, you'll be putting yourself ahead of the pack. If you distinguish
yourself through your story, you will make yourself memorable.
Be specific
• Don't, for example, state that you would make an excellent doctor unless you can back it
up with specific reasons. Your desire to become a lawyer, engineer, or whatever should
be logical, the result of specific experience that is described in your statement. Your
application should emerge as the logical conclusion to your story.
Find an angle
• If you’re like most people, your life story lacks drama, so figuring out a way to make it
interesting becomes the big challenge. Finding an angle or a "hook" is vital.
Concentrate on your opening paragraph
• The lead or opening paragraph is generally the most important. It is here that you grab the
reader's attention or lose it. This paragraph becomes the framework for the rest of the
statement.
Tell what you know
• The middle section of your essay might detail your interest and experience in your
particular field, as well as some of your knowledge of the field. Too many people
graduate with little or no knowledge of the nuts and bolts of the profession or field they
hope to enter. Be as specific as you can in relating what you know about the field and use
the language professionals use in conveying this information. Refer to experiences (work,
research, etc.), classes, conversations with people in the field, books you've read,
seminars you've attended, or any other source of specific information about the career
you want and why you're suited to it. Since you will have to select what you include in
your statement, the choices you make are often an indication of your judgment.
Don’t include some subjects
• There are certain things best left out of personal statements. For example, references to
experiences or accomplishments in high school or earlier are generally not good ideas.
Don't mention potentially controversial subjects (for example, controversial religious or
political issues).
Do some research, if needed
• If a school wants to know why you're applying to it rather than another school, do some
research to find out what sets your choice apart from other universities or programs. If the
school setting would provide an important geographical or cultural change for you, this
might be a factor to mention.
Write well and correctly
• Be meticulous. Type and proofread your essay very carefully. Many admissions officers
say that good written skills and command of correct use of language are important to
them as they read these statements. Express yourself clearly and concisely. Adhere to
stated word limits.
Avoid clichés
• A medical school applicant who writes that he is good at science and wants to help other
people is not exactly expressing an original thought. Stay away from often-repeated or
tired statements.

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 An Example of a Successful Statement
Source: “How to Write a Winning Personal Statement for Graduate and Professional School” by
Richard Stelzer

Statement #1

Having majored in literary studies (world literature) as an undergraduate, I would now like to
concentrate on English and American literature.

I am especially interested in nineteenth-century literature, women's literature, Anglo-Saxon

poetry, and folklore and folk literature. My personal literary projects have involved some
combination of these subjects. For the oral section of my comprehensive exams, I specialized in
nineteenth century novels by and about women. The relation ship between "high" and folk
literature became the subject for my honors essay, which examined Toni Morrison's use of
classical, biblical, African, and Afro-American folk tradition in her novel. I plan to work further
on this essay, treating Morrison's other novels and perhaps preparing a paper suitable for
publication.

In my studies toward a doctoral degree, I hope to examine more closely the relationship between
high and folk literature. My junior year and private studies of Anglo-Saxon language and
literature have caused me to consider the question of where the divisions between folklore, folk
literature, and high literature lie. Should I attend your school, I would like to resume my studies
of Anglo-Saxon poetry, with special attention to its folk elements.

Writing poetry also figures prominently in my academic and professional goals. I have just
begun submitting to the smaller journals with some success and am gradually building a working
manuscript for a collection. The dominant theme of this collection relies on poems that draw
from classical, biblical, and folk traditions, as well as everyday experience, in order to celebrate
the process of giving and taking life, whether literal or figurative. My poetry draws from and
influences my academic studies. Much of what I read and study finds a place in my creative
work as subject. At the same time, I study the art of literature by taking part in the creative
process, experimenting with the tools used by other authors in the past.

In terms of a career, I see myself teaching literature, writing criticism, and going into editing or
publishing poetry. Doctoral studies would be valuable to me in several ways. First, your teaching
assistant ship program would provide me with the practical teaching experience I am eager to
acquire. Further, earning a Ph.D. in English and American literature would advance my other
two career goals by adding to my skills, both critical and creative, in working with language.
Ultimately, however, I see the Ph.D. as an end in itself, as well as a professional stepping stone; I
enjoy studying literature for its own sake and would like to continue my studies on the level
demanded by the Ph.D. program.

(Stelzer pp. 40-41)

Some Advice from Admissions Representatives

Steven DeKrey
Director of Admissions and Financial Aid
J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management (Northwestern University)

We're looking for a well-written, detailed essay that responds directly to the question. The
questions are about extracurricular activities, motivation, challenges, commitment to the school
that kind of thing. We see a variety and that's fine. Our approach is very individualized. The way
the applicant devises the answer, determines the length, develops the response, is all part of the
answer. The level of effort applicants put into essays varies considerably, which sends messages
to the admissions committee as well. Over-involved, elaborate essays send one message, while
very brief and superficial essays send another message.

Trying to second-guess what we are looking for is a common mistake--which we can sense.

We can tell when applicants use answers to other schools' questions for our essays; we're
sensitive to this. Poorly written essays are a bad reflection on the applicant.

Don't over-elaborate; we're reading a lot of these kinds of essays. Also, don't be too brief or
superficial. We like to have major ideas presented well.

(adapted from Stelzer, p. 55)

Beth O'Neil
Director of Admissions and Financial Aid
University of California at Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall)

We're trying to gauge the potential for a student's success in law school, and we determine that,
principally, on the basis of what the student has done in the past. The personal statement carries
the responsibility of presenting the student's life experiences.

Applicants make a mistake by doing a lot of speculation about what they're going to do in the
future rather than telling us about what they've done in the past. It is our job to speculate, and we
are experienced at that.

Applicants also tend to state and not evaluate. They give a recitation of their experience but no
evaluation of what effect that particular experience head on them, no assessment of what certain
experiences or honors meant.

They also fail to explain errors or weaknesses in their background. Even though we might wish
to admit a student, sometimes we can't in view of a weakness that they haven't made any effort to
explain. For example, perhaps they haven't told us that they were ill on the day that they took the
LSAT or had an automobile accident on the way. Such things are legitimate reasons for poor
performance. I mean, we understand that life is tough sometimes. We need to know what
happened, for example, to cause a sudden drop in the GPA.
Another mistake is that everyone tries to make himself or herself the perfect law school applicant
who, of course, does not exist and is not nearly as interesting as a real human being.

Between l and 5 people read each application.

(Stelzer, p. 72)

John Herweg
Chairman, Committee on Admissions
Washington University School of Medicine

We are looking for a clear statement that indicates that the applicant can use the English
language in a meaningful and effective fashion. We frankly look at spelling as well as typing (for
errors both in grammar and composition). Most applicants use the statement to indicate their
motivation for medicine, the duration of that motivation, extracurricular activities, and work
experience. So those are some of the general things we are looking for in the Personal Comments
section.

We also want applicants to personalize the statement, to tell us something about themselves that
they think is worthy of sharing with us, something that makes them unique, different, and the
type of medical student and future physician that we're all looking for. What they have done in
working with individuals--whether it's serving as a checker or bagger at a grocery store or
working with handicapped individuals or tutoring inner city kids--that shows they can relate to
people and have they done it in an effective fashion. What the applicant should do in all respects
is to depict why he or she is a unique individual and should be sought after. Of course, if they
start every sentence on a whole page with "I," it gets to be a little bit too much.

(Stelzer, p. 82)

Exercise: Editing a Statement of Purpose

Editing your Statement of Purpose is a substantial step in finalizing your work. While it is
helpful to ask two of your instructors to read through your rough drafts, it is important to obtain
the skills necessary to edit yourself. Doing so will not only help you now, but will help you for
the rest of your academic career. For practice, as a group, use the advice from this workshop to
consider any revisions appropriate for the below Statement of Purpose. Begin by individually
reading and editing for 10-15 minutes. You should ask yourselves questions such as: “Are there
any grammatical errors?”, “Are there any clichés?”, “Is the information specific or too general?”,
and “Is there any irrelevant personal information?” Finally, follow up by discussing, as a group,
any changes or comments that group members have made.
Statement

I was raised to have a deep and reverential respect for the natural world around me. From

a very young age, I was taught the importance of science – whether to simply understand how

the things in my environment worked, or to contribute meaningful research that would affect the

lives of the next generation. My father actively fostered a love of science; he would read

Stephan Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time” with me during my middle school years, explain

the curvature of space while sitting on our family’s trampoline, and even got me a chemistry set

when most other girls my age were asking for ponies. My mother supported my endeavors as

well, making sure that I knew I could do just as well as the boys in my math and science classes.

So it came as no surprise to them when I enjoyed and prospered throughout all of my high school

science courses. But something was missing – and while I loved Biology, Chemistry and

Physics, I just could not see myself donning a white lab coat and poking Petri dishes or staring at

chalkboards full of equations all day. It was not until my first psychology course that I finally

realized what I was missing – the human element. Human beings are made up of various

compounds, molecules, electrical signals and hormones that somehow coalesce in all the right

ways to form a thinking, feeling organism. I am interested in the complexity of the human mind

– I am interested in how it works, and fascinated when it sometimes does not. In order to better

understand the structure of the brain, I plan to enter into the field of Experimental Psychology

with a focus in Neuropsychology.

From the Fall semester of 2004 through the Spring semester of 2007, I actively

contributed to the laboratories of both Dr. Mary Brown and Dr. Greg Burns. While working

with Dr. Brown, I have garnered an immense amount of practical experimental experience.

Under her mentorship, I have spent the past two years developing skills related to study
construction, data collection, data entry, and paper and poster development and presentation. I

have co-authored a poster entitled “Computerized Scoring of the Levels of Emotional Awareness

Scale” that has gone to the Western Psychological Association (WPA) Convention in Spring of

2006. I have also first-authored a poster entitled “Exploring Sex Differences on the Levels of

Emotional Awareness Scale Using Modified Instructions” that will be presented at the 2007

WPA Convention. During my first two semesters, I helped Dr. Brown with a vast variety of

research tasks, and as I became a more experienced member of her lab, the complexity and

variety of my assigned tasks increased, such as completing the training and orientation of new

lab members. In an effort to continue providing Research Assistants with diverse guidance, I

was put in charge of constructing and presenting various workshops to develop both basic and

advanced skills on programs such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Adobe Photoshop

Creative Suite 2. I also created two workshops on skills needed to apply and gain admission to

graduate school: choosing a mentor and preparing for the Graduate Record Exams.

During the summer of 2006, I was the first undergraduate ever in Dr. Brown’s lab to be

appointed to the position of Lab Manager. My task as manager was to meet with Dr. Brown

every week in order to organize weekly meetings with other Lab Assistants. This included

drafting agendas, organizing and preparing for workshops and presentations, and discussing

overall progress in the lab. I also ran lab meetings to oversee the progress of various research

related tasks, and to provide direction for fellow research assistants. I made myself available to

answer various questions on numerous topics; those pertaining to the lab itself, as well as general

questions about the GREs and applying to graduate school. I also helped with coordinating

plans to attend psychological association conferences. Finally, in order to assist with Dr.

Brown’s PSY 712 (Standardized Tests and Measurements) class, I learned advanced techniques
with Dreamweaver, and then answered questions on creating a website, linking pages, and how

to conduct an online study.

Despite the absolutely wonderful research experience I gained with Dr. Brown, I found

my passion with neuropsychology while working with Dr. Greg Burns. In Dr. Burn’s lab, I

helped develop a study to classically condition Event Related Potentials. I learned how to apply

surface electrodes to a volunteer’s scalp, and then presented visual and auditory stimuli to the

participant. However, we soon found that the equipment and software we were using were out of

date; so for the past two semesters, we have been trying to develop a program to correctly

present the stimuli at staggered intervals and to record the brain’s responses. This required me to

collaborate with engineering students, as the program we need must use engineering software to

correctly time stimuli and average the incoming brain waves. Our work is ongoing, and this

semester we should finally be able to determine whether or not classical conditioning can “trick”

the brain into producing lessened, but observable responses without a physical stimulus present.

Participating in Dr. Burn’s lab has given me valuable hands on experience interacting with

participants, developing studies, and working with professionals in other fields to create

workable solutions to a psychology-based problem.

During my undergraduate career, I successfully managed my time between work, school,

and extracurricular duties. I excelled at my studies, obtaining a 3.99 unweighted GPA. I spent

4-5 hours a week in Dr. Burn’s lab working with other assistants. While lab manager, I

contributed 8-12 hours a week to the lab, and fielded calls at home if a research assistant needed

immediate help with a task. Assistants could also reach me by email when I was not on campus.

During the Summer and Fall semesters that I participated as manager, I also worked 25 hours a

week as a sales associate at Canyonland, a store specializing in rocks, minerals, and Southwest
Native American trinkets. There, I spent time greeting customers, cashiering, stocking,

merchandizing, ordering, receiving, updating the store’s computers, and designing and printing

signs, informational printouts, and technical information sheets on the various specimens and

Native artifacts. I worked diligently at both jobs part time – while still remaining a full time

student – and maintaining straight A’s for both semesters.

However, the largest part of my undergraduate career was spent fostering a love of

experimental psychology through laboratory work. This lab work has allowed me to cultivate a

particular research focus – I am interested in basic questions of sensation, perception, and

cognition at an almost reductionist level. I am attracted to the idea that an understanding of brain

anatomy can lead to a greater understanding of emotion, cognition, and perception. I am

fascinated by the physical capabilities and limitations of the brain, and how the development of

new technology can depend on neuropsychology. For example, linguistics has always held a

special appeal to me, and the advancements of voice recognition and production software rely

heavily on understanding the perception of pitch, and how humans produce and understand

speech. I believe that neuropsychology can inform the development of technology; from giving

paraplegics wirelessly controlled mechanical limbs that receive messages from their motor

cortex to developing glasses that transmit information to occipital lobe implants and let the blind

see. A background in neuropsychology adds a vital piece towards understanding these

technological puzzles.

Overall, I believe that my work and research experience has prepared me for the demands

of the graduate program here at UNLV. I have shown that I strive and flourish under the

pressures of advanced coursework, and the commitments of both lab and work. It has come to

my attention that both Dr. Chris Matthews and Dr. Aaron Adams will be joining UNLV this fall
as faculty with specializations in Neuropsychology. I hope to correspond with both during the

application process, to get better acquainted with their research interests. I am excited at the

prospect of working with one of the new faculty members in the fall, and look forward to

producing quality research that reflects UNLV’s high standards. If my undergraduate research

experience is any indication, I truly believe that UNLV will help me achieve my goals for higher

education as well as prepare me for a career in Neuropsychology.

 Additional Resources

http://www.uni.edu/~gotera/gradapp/stmtpurpose.htm

http://ls.berkeley.edu/files/statement_of_purpose.pdf

http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~natalia/studyinus/guide/statement/samples.htm

http://www.minglebox.com/article/studyabroad/sample_statement_of_purpose_psychology1

http://web.clas.ufl.edu/users/msscha/psych/personal_statement.html